During cooking, the lids of vessels, from the size of large pots to small pans, must be removed from time to time to test, stir and season the food. It has always been a problem of where to place the lid at this time so that both hands of the cook can be freed. The problem is made a more difficult one because the lid is hot and the hands can be easily burned unless precautions are taken. Furthermore, the lids have moisture on the underside due to the steam coming from the meats and vegetables being cooked, adding another dimension to the hazard.
In many instances, the cook tries to solve the problem by continuing to hold the lid in one hand by the handle, while trying to do the testing, stirring, seasoning and the like with the other hand. This is a very awkward procedure and becomes more difficult if the cook has to move away from the stove for some reason, and/or is temporarily interrupted during the procedure. If a plate or platter is used on the counter next to the stove, a substantial amount of counter space is in effect wasted.
Further, this method of dealing with the problem simply means that another dish has to be washed at the end of the meal. In order to avoid using an extra platter or plate, some cooks will simply try to balance the lid upside down on the handle, which as will be recognized is a precarious position. In this regard, the chances of burning the hands while trying to position the lid is greatly increased.
There have been attempts in the past to provide a portable holder for a lid or lids that can be placed on the counter adjacent to the stove. While the concept of such a holder is thus known, the previous approaches in this regard leave much to be desired. One such approach is illustrated in the patent to Pohler, U.S. Pat. No. 4,790,503 having a base and a fabricated wire rack extending upwardly from the base for a single lid. The rack requires the lid to rest on horizontal cross wires that are positioned relatively close together so that only relatively small lids can be accommodated. Even small lids are precariously perched on these cross wires making the slightest bump of the holder, or inadvertent mishandling during placement or pick-up of the lid, likely to cause the lid to become dislodged and fall on the counter or the floor.
Other inventors have approached providing a lid holder from other directions, such as shown in the Princevalle U.S. Pat. No. 3,326,387. In this case, the holder is made of sheet metal forming a tray with notches in the side walls where the extreme lower edges of the lids are to be positioned. As can be comprehended by viewing the design of this holder, the lids are not held in a secure manner. There is no component that engages the lid along its top face in a manner to keep it from having a tendency of slipping out of the notches, and thus falling. This holder of the '387 patent, like the holder in the '503 patent, thus limits the practical size of the lid that can be placed in it. Furthermore, the lids for this holder must be a particular design around the outer rim in order to fit within the notches, and is thus clearly not a universal holder. The instability of the lids is particularly precarious when the lids are attempted to be placed in a more upright orientation, as illustrated in FIG. 1 of the '387 patent.
Considering the above shortcomings of the prior art, what is needed is a portable lid holder that provides a more secure retention of the lids and is universal in so far as the size and shape of the lids that can be accommodated. Of course, the lid holder that is desired should be simple and low cost in design, thus making it more acceptable to use by cooks.